Reps release Tax Acts amid gazette discrepancy claims

The House of Representatives has made public the four tax reform Acts recently signed into law by President Bola Tinubu, in a move aimed at addressing claims of discrepancies between the laws passed by the National Assembly and versions in circulation.

The decision followed concerns raised during plenary over alleged inconsistencies in the gazetted copies of the new tax laws. Lawmakers warned that failure to clarify the situation could erode public trust in the legislative process.

Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, acting in concurrence with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, directed the immediate release of the Certified True Copies (CTCs) of the Acts, including the endorsement and assent pages signed by the President, to enable public scrutiny and verification.

The Acts released are the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025; and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, 2025.

The controversy surfaced when a lawmaker from Sokoto State, Abdussamad Dasuki, raised a point of privilege, drawing attention to what he described as inconsistencies between some versions of the tax laws in circulation and the texts debated and passed by the National Assembly. Dasuki cautioned that allowing such versions to persist unchallenged could undermine confidence in both the laws and the legislature.

In response, the House resolved to probe the matter, prompting the Speaker to order an internal verification of the Acts and their public release to dispel doubts about their authenticity.

In a statement on Saturday, House spokesperson Akin Rotimi said the release of the Acts underscored the leadership’s commitment to transparency and legislative integrity.

“The attention of the House was drawn to the existence of inconsistent versions of the tax laws in circulation after a vigilant Honourable member identified discrepancies, raised the alarm, and formally reported the matter to the House on a point of privilege,” the statement said.

“Acting promptly, the Speaker ordered an internal verification and the immediate public release of the certified Acts to eliminate doubt, restore clarity, and protect the sanctity of the legislative record.”

Rotimi said the Speaker provided firm leadership throughout the tax reform process, which involved stakeholder consultations, committee scrutiny, clause-by-clause consideration and plenary debates.

“Throughout the process, the Speaker consistently emphasised that tax reform must be anchored on clarity, fairness, and strict adherence to constitutional and parliamentary procedure,” he said.

According to the statement, the four Acts form the backbone of Nigeria’s current tax reform framework, designed to modernise revenue administration, improve compliance, reduce inefficiencies and strengthen fiscal coordination across the federation.

In directing the release of the certified copies, Abbas reassured Nigerians that the National Assembly operates as an institution of records.

“The National Assembly is an institution built on records, procedure, and institutional memory. Every bill, every amendment, and every Act follows a traceable constitutional and parliamentary pathway,” the Speaker was quoted as saying.

“Once a law is passed and assented to, its integrity is preserved through certification and custody by the legislature. There is no ambiguity about what constitutes the law.” The House stressed that the certified versions released by the National Assembly remain the only authentic and authoritative texts of the four tax Acts.

“Members of the public, institutions, professionals, and stakeholders are therefore advised to disregard any other documents or versions in circulation that are not certified by the National Assembly,” the statement added.

It also disclosed that the Clerk to the National Assembly has completed the process of aligning the Acts with the Federal Government Printing Press to ensure accuracy and uniformity, while hard copies have been circulated to lawmakers and made available to the public.

Meanwhile, the House said the Ad-Hoc Committee set up to investigate the alleged alterations would continue its work.

“The committee, chaired by Rt Hon Muktar Betara, will determine the circumstances surrounding the circulation of unauthorised versions of the tax Acts and recommend measures to prevent a recurrence,” the statement said.

The House reaffirmed its commitment to constitutionalism, transparency and the protection of the integrity of Nigeria’s legislative process.

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